There was tension in Abeokuta, Ogun State, on Saturday, as security operatives arrested five agitators of the Yoruba nation who defied the police ban on a mass rally in the state capital.

Among those arrested was Zannu Williams, a young man who wore a traditional regalia.

The Police Command had barred the agitators from the mass rally, saying intelligence report showed that the organizers of the rally “are being sponsored by certain individuals outside the State and the country to destabilize Ogun State.”

The Spokesman of the Command, Abimbola Oyeyemi, in a statement said the proponents of the Yoruba nation had held series of rallies in the different parts of the State, but the command would not perpetually stand by and watch public conducts of some citizens “hold others to the ransom and threaten the corporate existence of the country.”

He said: “The Command therefore, wishes to appeal to the leaders of this group to shelve the idea of staging another public rally in any part of the State for now, as such is capable of undermining the relative peace being enjoyed in the entire State.

“Consequently, the rally slated for Abeokuta on 1st May, 2021, is viewed by the Command as one too many in the State, and therefore not approved.
“Parents and guardians are hereby advised to warn their children and wards not to be involved in any of such gathering that may expose them to violence and consequently bring them on a collision course with the security agencies.”

But a pro – Yoruba nation group, Ilana Omo Oodua, declared that the agitators would not back off on the rally.

As early as 7am on Saturday, our correspondent observed that security operatives took over the streets of Abeokuta in order to stop the rally.
Police helicopter was also hovered over some areas in the state capital.

Our correspondent who visited the Ake palace, venue of the rally, observed joint security operatives manning strategic positions.

However, a procession of the Yoruba nation agitators, in defiance, passed the Ake palace street, despite the presence of heavy security men.
With solitary songs blaring from the speakers attached to the moving vehicles, the procession comprising young men and women, headed towards Adatan area of the metropolis.

A police source told our correspondent that no fewer than five defiant agitators have been arrested by the operatives.

“We have arrested about five persons including a woman,” a police source told Daily Trust.

How Security Forces Eliminated IPOB Commander Ikonson, other Unknown Gunmen in South-East

A combined team of security forces led by troops of the Nigerian Army have raided the operational Headquarters of the IPOB/ESN terrorists in Awomama Village, Oru East LGA of Imo State.

The early morning raid by troops of Nigerian Army, Nigerian Police Intelligence Response Team (IRT) and operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) was launched in the early hours of Saturday 24 April, 2021, following a detailed intelligence report on the location of the terrorists’ Operational Headquarters and the movement of the overall Commander popularly known as Ikonson Commander.

The IRT and DSS teams along with troops of 82 Division of the Nigerian Army have been on the trail of the terror group since the unfortunate attacks on the Imo State Police Command and the Owerri Correctional Center on 5 April 2021.

The said Ikonson Commander who was the mastermind of those attacks in addition to multiple attacks in the South East and South South regions, was neutralised along with 6 of his top Commanders.

The joint intelligence team had earlier interviewed several arrested IPOB/ESN terrorists in connection with the April 5 attacks and they all confessed that Ikonson Commander who was named as Vice President by their leader, Nnamdi Kanu, was the one that mobilized men and resources as well as ordered and orchestrated the attacks on Owerri. They equally revealed that Ikonson was responsible for many other attacks on Police stations across the two geo-political zones.

The intelligence team later tracked the IPOB/ESN top leader to his exact location in Awomama village where he (Ikonson) and his to Commanders were hibernating and plotting dastardly acts against the Nigerian state.

On noticing the presence of the joint operations team, IPOB/ESN terrorists brought heavy volume of fire on the raiding team who swiftly responded and overwhelmed them with superior fire power that neutralised Ikonson and six of his top Commanders. Sadly however, a Second Lieutenant and three IRT operatives paid the supreme price in the fire fight that ensued. The four officers who fought gallantly have already been evacuated to a military facility in Owerri.

So far, 3 AK 47 riffles, a Toyota Sienna van belonging to the terrorists and several other items of value including drugs suspected to be psychotropic substances were recovered and are being processed by the intelligence team to assist in further investigations and operations in the area. The joint security team is already dominating the general area while preparations for further operations are in top gear.

The neutralised Ikonson Commander had in several occasions posed for photographs with the fugitive leader of IPOB, Nnamdi Kanu.

The Chief of Army Staff, Lt Gen Ibrahim Attahiru has commended the troops, the Police IRT and DSS operatives for their determination in ensuring that the operation was a success. He prayed for the repose of the souls of the gallant officers who lost their lives in the operation, stressing that their sacrifice will never be in vain.

The Nigerian Army along with other security agencies will sustain intelligence-based kinetic operations in the South East and South South until the regions are free of terrorist activities.

Mohammed Yerima
Brigadier General
Director Army Public Relations

The Indigenous People of Biafra has vowed to avenge the death of the Eastern Security Network's commander, called Ikonso.

Ikonso was killed on Saturday by the security operatives in a joint raid of the ESN in Awomawa, Oru local government area of Imo State on Saturday.

Security agencies had faulted the ESN, the security wing of IPOB, for the attack on the police headquarters in Imo and the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS) headquarters on April 5, 2021.

The group had also been accused of launching several isolated attacks on security personnel at different locations in the South-East and South-South.

According to PRNigeria, an intelligence officer said that the group's fighters opened fire as security forces approached their hideout in Awomama village on Saturday.

Reacting to Ikonso's death, IPOB, in a statement titled 'KILLING OF ESN COMMANDER: HOPE UZODIMA HAS STIRRED THE HORNET NET' by its spokesman, Emma Powerful, said the Imo Governor should brace for the repercussion.

The group accused Uzodinma of inviting Nigeria's security agencies to kill Ikonso and other members.

The statement partly reads, "We the global family of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), ably led by our great leader Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, strongly condemn the unprovoked attack on some members of IPOB and ESN operatives at Oguta junction at Mgbidi, along Owerri road Onitsha expressway by a joint security force comprising the army, police and DSS operatives, with the support of Imo State Government.

"The killing of the heroic innocent Biafrans protecting our communities and towns from Fulani terrorist herdsmen masquerading as cattle herders in cold blood is very painful.

"The Supreme Court Administrator of Imo State, Hope Uzodinma and all those who had a hand in this wickedness will pay dearly. Hope Uzodinma and his cowardly Nigerian security agencies cannot confront Fulani terrorists but only flex their muscles when they see Biafra agitators. For murdering Ikonso, the ESN unit commander, Uzodinma has stirred the hornet nest in cold blood! He should get ready for a sting.

"Uzodima decided to kill Ikonso because he refused his offer to head Ebubeagu ghost security outfit formed by South-East governors. Uzodinma has tried but without success to lure ESN operatives into Ebubeagu. He had made irresistible offers to them which were turned down, hence his resorting to eliminating these patriotic heroes who vowed never to betray Biafra.

"Hope Uzodinma sent a lot of emissaries to beg Ikonso and other ESN officers to join our security outfit. So, because they refused to betray Biafra agitation and our Leader Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, the hopeless governor mobilized joint security forces to attack them today."

The Biafra secessionist group also refuted claims that security agents penetrated the ESN camp on Saturday. Instead, it said they only ambushed Ikonso.

"Contrary to claims by the cowardly security forces who flee from terrorists but kill innocent citizens, they were not able to penetrate into the camp of Eastern Security Network ESN. They only ambushed Ikonso but we promise them hell for this cowardly act," the group added.

A lecturer at the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University Bauchi, Associate Prof. Abdulsalam Ya’u-Gital has picked holes in Professor Samuel Achi’s claims that his son was killed by Muslim extremists at the prompting of the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr. Isa Ali-Pantami.

On Wednesday, Mr Achi had granted an interview to the SaharaReporters, alleging that his son, Sunday, was strangled to death inside the ATBU mosque where Mr Pantami was the Chief Imam.

“One thing I know that you people (media) got wrong was that my son was not stoned to death. He was strangled inside the mosque and they threw the corpse outside the university mosque,” Mr Achi told the newspaper.

But while speaking with DAILY NIGERIAN on Friday, Mr Ya’u-Gital dismissed Mr Achi’s claim, saying Mr Sunday was killed at a riot that broke out during Student Union election in 2004.

According to Mr Ya’u-Gital, who teaches at the Mathematical Sciences Department of the ATBU, the 400level student was not strangled inside the mosque where the then Mr. Pantami was an Imam.

The lecturer, who was a student of the university at the time, stressed that no such a thing would happen in any mosque in Bauchi without the Muslim community reporting the party involved.

“It has never happened and will never happen God’s willing.

“Anybody that was familiar with Nigerian tertiary institutions from 90s to early 2000s knew that student riots were commonplace, especially on matters that concerned student elections or their welfare.

“It was only unfortunate that the killing of Mr. Sunday, who was a victim of student riot, would be tagged as religious.

“During the incident, the hardworking and dedicated Nigerian Department of State Security Services came into the school, conducted their investigations and made so many arrests.

“If Dr. Pantami was involved; I believe the DSS would have dealt with him, as the DSS does not in any way play or joke with anything that claimed life of a citizen.

“To make it worse, Pantami was a common man like me then.

“So, are you telling me that the DSS doesn’t know what it is doing? Can you know better than the secret police?

“We should we be playing politics with anything involving the reputation of the agencies that protect us; it may look like an insult to the security agencies of this country in the eyes of the world.

“I want to urge Nigerians to read the writings on the wall because these whole things are coming around at this time to tarnish the image of the minister.

“I believe in the process of making positive changes in the country, and due to human nature, Dr. Pantami must have stepped on some toes that are now out on a revenge mission which forced them to think of an event that happened 16 years back when Dr. Pantami was nobody,” the professor added.

The scholar added that, “please, Nigerians should focus on developmental issues, issues that will bring positive changes for common citizens to smile in the country”.

The Jama’atu Nasril Islam (JNI), top Islamic body, has refuted allegations linking it and Isa Pantami, minister of communications and digital economy, to the death of Patrick Yakowa, ex-governor of Kaduna state.

The JNI said in a statement on Friday that such reports are “disheartening” and “disgusting”, adding that it never held a meeting regarding Yakowa when he was alive.

An unverified document which has gone viral claims the embattled minister allegedly plotted Yakowa’s death when he presided over a JNI meeting in the 2000s.

“The JNI under the leadership of His Eminence Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar, CFR, mni, the Sultan of Sokoto and President General of the JNI, was taken aback by the desperation of some disgruntled elements who in their desperate attempt to smear the image of the Minister of Communication and Digital Economy drag the name of the JNI as being part of an alleged plot to assassinate the late Governor Yakowa of Kaduna state,” the organisation said.

“To start with, how could Sheikh Pantami chair a JNI meeting while he was not one of its leaders either at the National or state levels? What could have necessitated the combination of Bauchi, Plateau, Niger and Kaduna states from different geo political zones in the meeting? If Yakowa was vehemently hated by the Muslims and were desperately trying to ‘get rid’ of him. How did he win the 2011 elections in a Muslim dominated state of Kaduna where a Muslim-Muslim ticket recently sailed through? Who voted him in?

“The so-called pieces of minutes shared by the media to further confuse and manipulate an average Nigerian’s mind into believing this orchestrated lie has further confirmed the desperation of the perpetrators. It is very perplexing and heart-rending that minutes of an assassination plot could be written and kept. How disheartening and disgusting!”

More to follow…

The federal government has awarded N10 million as seed funding to five winners of the 2021 Creativity and Innovation Challenge.

The five winners, who were given N2m each, emerged from 800 contestants that participated in the contest from the 36 states of the federation, including the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

The five winners are: Nwachinemere Emeka, from Ibadan, who invented Kitovu Technology Company to assist farmers; Muhammad Banre from Kaduna, who invented Scholar limited, a learning app; Jeremiah Kuro from PH, who invented Bliu-I Automation limited, an automotive app; Ajiboye Mayowa from PH, who invented a learning app, CBTNL.Com and Izu Freeman from Abuja, who invented another learning App, CAPSULE.

Presenting the awards at the National Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics Resource Centre, Abuja, the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr. Isa Pantami said apart from the grant, the winners will also get commendation letters from him to boost their Curriculum Vitae while they will join the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) Technology Innovation and Entrepreneurship scheme.

The Director General of NITDA, Kashifu Abdullahi, said Nigeria has a bustling fintech ecosystem, with over 200 fintech, global attention and venture capital investment.

“Emerging superpowers like China are now reaping the benefits of their technology-innovation initiatives and policies. Innovations, particularly market-creating innovations, have the potential to transform nations and lift them out of poverty.”

to the arrest of 19 suspected Nigerian nationals who attempted to enter Ghana through an unapproved route.

This was contained in a statement issued by the Ghana Police Service.

The Operation Motherland team, comprising the police, military and immigration officers, arrested the ECOWAS nationals at Akuse, a community in the Eastern Region.

They were aboard a VW craftwer bus with registration number GR 1344 – 21, driven by suspect Mawuli Katasi 32.

The statement issued by the Police Affairs Unit of the Eastern Regional Police Command said the suspects confirmed their identities as such and were travelling from Aflao in the Volta Region to Ada in Accra.

The suspects have since been handed over to the Ghana Immigration Service for further action.

Ghanaian authorities are on high alert after over 1,800 prisoners escaped from lawful custody in Nigeria.

At least nine of the fugitives have been arrested in Ghana following the development.

Igbochief001:

Do u have evidence he didn't ?

Someone made a threat and the exact threat came.to pass and u say we should not explore the possibility of him being responsible ?

SmartProf:

That's why I used the statement 'may have'. The point is that allegations need investigation to either confirm or refute not just counsel to merely ignore.

SmartProf:
The state CAN chairman may have collected his own 30 pieces of Silver just like Judas. What needs to be investigated cannot be ignored. That's why we are where we are in Naija.

“Society’s discomforts and disagreements should, however, not be enough reasons for us to approve the circulation of phony and injurious statements against any perceived foe. However, we consider that the communique could be doctored.

John Joseph Hayab, chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Kaduna state chapter, says insinuations linking Isa Pantami, minister of communications and digital economy, to the death of Patrick Yakowa, a former governor of the state, should be ignored.

Pantami, who is under fire for once holding views in support of terror groups, had allegedly chaired a zonal meeting of the Jama’atu Nasril Islam (JNI) in July 2010 where plans were allegedly hatched to kill Yakowa.

He eventually died in December 2012 in a helicopter crash in Bayelsa state alongside Owoye Azazi, retired general and former national security adviser (NSA).

In a document now making the rounds as the purported minutes of the meeting allegedly chaired by Pantami in 2010, Yakowa and his family members were marked out to be killed.

But reacting in a statement, Hayab, who served as religious affairs adviser to Yakowa, said such allegations should not be considered until proper investigations are done.

“I am alarmed by the dangerous turns of events, especially the issue linked with the release of some documents with doubtful authenticity linking the embattled minister, Pantami and the Muslim community with the death of His Excellency, Sir Patrick Ibrahim Yakowa,” he said.

“The church and Yakowa’s family consider the allegation very serious with a possible adverse impact on peace and national security. Consequently, the church expresses strong reservations and concerns about statements like the ones associated in the past by Pantami as circulated in audios and videos released on social media.

“Society’s discomforts and disagreements should, however, not be enough reasons for us to approve the circulation of phony and injurious statements against any perceived foe. However, we consider that the communique could be doctored. We are aware that in this age of technological advancements, we have to take any allegations with a pinch of salt until we are confident of the authenticity of the source.

“Sensitive documents like the ones purported to be from the JNI meeting in Bauchi should be subjected to thorough security investigation and trials, not tools for social media warfare. The danger of making this a media issue, instead of a legal and security issue that it ought to be, is that we stand to lose the most important point: that of bringing to justice persons accused to have wronged the law.

“Accordingly, there is a need for circumspection and care so that we do not throw our communities into further chaos in the rush to hang one man. At a time of strained relationships between neighbours, what we need are mediatory interventions and peace building, rather than adding fuel to the raging fire.”

He said, to be sure, when Yakowa died, there was no inquiry to determine the cause of his death, aside from the immediate and likely technical fault leading to the helicopter crash.

He said the Christian community and indeed his immediate family acknowledged the tragedy, submitting to the will of God Almighty.

“And for that purpose, there is no point, now or later, to open up what will not bring back Yakowa but rather open up old wounds in a very controversial manner,” he said.

The cleric said those with an axe to grind with Pantami should do so within their limits.

He said as a church leader, he chose to speak because of his deep belief that justice is natural.

“Besides, if we support unverified allegations against someone today because we loathe the person, the monster could be deployed against us or someone we cherish tomorrow,” he said.

“As someone very close to the late Yakowa, I call on all Nigerians to ignore the insinuations linking Pantami with Sir Yakowa’s death, endangering national peace. This, I call on security agencies to step in and tame the circulation of such dangerous documents.”

He added that those who feel they have information to help the security agencies investigate whatever crimes against groups or individuals should do so within the provided window, without exacerbating the tension of formulating tales in the public space.

Gandollaar:
OP noticed!


Still won't be made a Mod.